Warren Buffett Issues Largest Ever Yen Bonds This Year... "Expectations for Japan Investment"

Berkshire Hathaway Issues Over 2 Trillion Won in Yen Bonds

‘Investment master’ Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway issued a large-scale yen bond exceeding 2 trillion won on the 10th (local time), marking what is expected to be the largest issuance of yen bonds this year. Accordingly, there is analysis that Buffett will further increase his investment proportion in Japanese stocks.

According to Bloomberg News, Berkshire Hathaway issued seven yen bonds totaling 281.8 billion yen (approximately 2.56 trillion won) on that day. Berkshire Hathaway started issuing yen bonds once a year from 2019 and has been issuing them twice a year since 2022.

It is certain that Buffett will issue the largest-ever yen bonds this year. According to Bloomberg, the total amount of yen bonds issued twice this year by Berkshire Hathaway reached 545.1 billion yen, surpassing the previous 430 billion yen in 2019. This is more than three times the amount compared to 160 billion yen in 2021.

The market evaluates that since Buffett has invested in Japanese assets with the money raised through yen bond issuance so far, it is highly likely that he will make similar investments this time as well.

Some experts believe Buffett may invest in Japan's banking, insurance, and shipping sectors. Mitsushige Akino, CEO of Ichiyoshi Asset Management, told Bloomberg, “Currently, the market is focusing on which Japanese stocks Buffett will buy and whether there are stocks that meet his criteria.”

Buffett continues to increase his investment proportion in Japanese stocks. Since purchasing 5% stakes each in Japan's five major general trading companies?Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Sumitomo, Marubeni, and Itochu?in 2020, Buffett currently holds about an 8% average stake in each. Buffett's investment in Japanese assets was a major driving force behind the Nikkei 225 index reaching an all-time high earlier this year, after a long period of stagnation following the bubble economy collapse in the 1980s and 1990s.

However, since Japan raised interest rates for the first time in 17 years this year, signaling the end of its negative interest rate policy, there are also forecasts that Buffett's investment in Japanese assets through yen bond issuance will have less impact on the market than before. CEO Akino pointed out, “From the perspective of foreign investors, not buying Japanese stocks now does not mean falling behind,” adding, “There is also an advantage in putting funds raised in yen into investment destinations other than Japanese stocks.”